The Abominable Snowmen

The TARDIS brings the Doctor, Jamie and Victoria to the Det-Sen monastery in Tibet, and the Doctor takes this as an opportunity to return their holy ghanta, which he took with him on a previous visit. The monks, however, are not as welcoming as they once were; the monastery is being harassed by a pack of Yeti - massive furry creatures normally shy and reserved who have turned hostile. Also at the monaster
y in the explorer Travers, who is looking for proof of the Yeti's existence, and his initial suspicion of the Doctor and company gives way to the truth, that they are all under seige. The Doctor's investigations lead him to discover that the Yeti are not creatures of flesh and blood but furry robots under the control of a non-corporeal entity, and it is looking for a way to gain a physical foothold on Earth...

The Abominable Snowmen is another epic second Doctor adventure which is missing five of its six parts, meaning it's another hopscotch between audio and video to enjoy this one. It's true that something is better than nothing, and with at least one episode to see one can see the Yeti and the full cast of characters and imagine the rest. It's another large cast, made up mostly of the monks of Det-Sen in their various castes (some are warriors) which makes for some fun battle scenes with the Yeti when they attack. Or, at least, it sounds like it. The Target novelization gives some pretty good description of what goes on in the story - I remember a long time ago around the same time I got my Tomb of the Cybermen novel I saw this one on the shelf at a Coles in downtown Toronto but didn't kick up enough fuss to get my parents to buy it
for me.

This is, however, the start of the Doctor's tussles with what will be known as The Great Intelligence (it must have named itself). As far as enemies go... well it's got an impressive army in the Yeti even if they're simple robots and not thinking creatures. I've never bought into the disembodied intelligence enemy, though; it doesn't always work and comes as a bit of a cop-out really, at least as far as I feel. But hey an enemy with no physical form is really budget friendly
for design departments so why not... it will be back again in the same season and then again in the series' fiftieth anniversary year, as well as in a spin off somewhere in between. The Yeti themselves were supposed to become a monster to rival the popularity of the Daleks and Cybermen and they succeeded enough to be considered for a return a few seasons later, although it didn't happen. The biggest disappointment of modern times where the Yeti are concerned is that they came *this* close to being an action figure in the Character Options line but for some reason the egomaniac in charge of the line decided he knew better and advised against it. Did the Yeti get a proper shake? Possibly not, but since they were tied to the Great Intelligence they wouldn't be able to come back on their own.

The prototype. Not meant to be.

Poor Victoria though... orphaned by the Daleks, menaced by the Cybermen and then effectively possessed by the Great Intelligence... she's not really having an easy time of it with the Doctor and Jamie, is she? Still she is holding up pretty well despite her relatively sheltered life before they came along. Jamie is still all brave and everything he should be - whether he's showing off for Victoria or not. He does try to look all impervious to the cold of the Himalayas, telling her that he's a Highlander and can take it, until he admits he needs a jacket. Not pants though, his kilt is working just fine for him.

But despite the victory, the Great Intelligence is not totally defeated and is still out there somewhere waiting for a second attempt to invade Earth...


NEXT EPISODE; THE ICE WARRIORS